Christie’s will offer 218 timepieces at its Geneva Rare Watches auction on November 9, 2026, at the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues, and the catalog spans two eras of collecting. Leading the sale are a yellow gold Patek Philippe Nautilus Ref. 3700/1 made for Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said of Oman, a 1948 Patek Philippe Ref. 1518, a London-made Cartier Octagonal Allongée, and the five-piece F.P. Journe Ruthenium collection once owned by Michael Schumacher.
Christie's Geneva Rare Watches auction takes place November 9, 2026, at the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues with 218 timepieces. Highlights include a 1978 Patek Philippe Nautilus Ref. 3700/1 made for Sultan Qaboos and Michael Schumacher's five F.P. Journe Ruthenium watches, each sold separately.
The numbers explain the theme. More than 35 of the watches are vintage, while 39 come from independent watchmakers, and seven of those are unique pieces. Christie’s argument is that historically significant vintage pieces and the most sought-after independent creations now pull from the same pool of collectors, seasoned connoisseurs and a newer generation alike.
The Nautilus carries the best story in the room. Made in 1978 for His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said, it joins only five yellow gold Ref. 3700 examples with the “Khanjar” dial that were publicly known before its discovery. It comes directly from its original owner, a man who worked in close proximity to the Sultan, and it has survived in superb original condition.
That owner’s account travels with the watch. As a young man meeting Sultan Qaboos at the Palace for the first time, he was asked the time and, not wearing a watch, couldn’t answer. The Sultan gave him a wristwatch. On later occasions, the Sultan noticed he was again without it, so the young man taught himself to read the passage of hours and minutes and to estimate the time with growing accuracy.
Sultan Qaboos later bestowed the Nautilus on him, and he has kept it ever since as a reminder of the man who taught him to value time. That is rare auction provenance, the kind that makes a steel-sport icon in gold feel personal rather than merely precious. It’s estimated at CHF 500,000–1,000,000 (US$610,000–1,200,000).
The Ref. 1518 sits at the other end of Patek Philippe’s history. Introduced in 1941, it was the world’s first serially produced perpetual calendar chronograph wristwatch, and only 281 were made between 1941 and 1954, most in yellow gold.
Christie’s example is yellow gold with raised gold hour markers. The Patek Philippe Archives confirm it was produced in 1948 and sold on December 17, 1948—most probably, by Christie’s reading, as a Christmas or New Year’s gift. It’s estimated at CHF 500,000–1,000,000 (US$630,000–1,300,000).
Cartier’s contribution comes from London, where Jean-Jacques Cartier had launched watch production and, in the 1960s and 1970s, pushed designs like the Crash that deliberately broke from the round and rectangular norm.
The 1990 Octagonal Allongée stretches the traditional Octagonal case along its vertical axis into a rectangular silhouette whose chamfered corners create eight sides. It’s the first example of the 1990 series to appear at international auction, estimated at CHF 400,000–600,000 (US$490,000–720,000). The timing is pointed: at Christie’s May 2026 Rare Watches sale in Geneva, a London 1990 Crash exceeded $2 million, the highest price ever paid for a Cartier wristwatch.
The Independents
The contemporary half of the catalog holds its own. Voutilainen, independent since 2002, introduced the Vingt-8 in 2011, and the sale’s Vingt-8 SC is a unique piece in stainless steel with an onyx dial. Its hour markers are baton indexes except at 5 o’clock, where a Roman “V” marks the current owner’s birthday on the 5th. The estimate is CHF 300,000–500,000 (US$360,000–600,000).
Sylvain Pinaud, a rising name who trained at Techniques Horlogères Appliquées (THA), the workshop founded by François-Paul Journe, Vianney Halter, and Denis Flageollet, is represented by a unique Origine. Pinaud launched the Origine in 2022, when it took the Revelation Prize at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG). Two years later, he made this one-off with a black dial, pink gold hands and bridges, and a platinum case, estimated at CHF 100,000–200,000 (US$130,000–250,000).
F.P. Journe brings a complete pink gold Vagabondage trilogy with matching numbers. The Vagabondage I (No. 36/68-V, circa 2023), the Vagabondage II (No. 36/68-VII, circa 2010), and the Vagabondage III (No. 36/68-VIII, circa 2017) are each estimated at CHF 400,000–800,000 (US$500,000–990,000).
Separately, the family of its original owner is consigning a silvered-dial Tourbillon Souverain from the third-generation Reference T series, No. 125/01T, delivered in 2001. Introduced in 1999, the Reference T was F.P. Journe’s earliest series-produced wristwatch and the first with a remontoir d’égalité. This one is estimated at CHF 650,000–1,400,000 (US$820,000–1,800,000).
Schumacher’s Ruthenium Set
Then there’s the Ruthenium collection: five F.P. Journe watches, all numbered 92/99, formerly owned by Michael Schumacher and offered in the year that marks 30 years since he joined Scuderia Ferrari. Rather than selling the set whole, Christie’s is offering each watch as a separate lot, so more collectors have a shot at a piece of the Schumacher collection.
The Octa Jour et Nuit, Octa Chronographe, and Octa Calendrier are each estimated at CHF 300,000–600,000 ($380,000–740,000), while the Tourbillon Souverain and the Chronomètre à Résonance are each estimated at CHF 650,000–1,200,000 ($800,000–1,500,000). Further down the estimate range, an Urban Jürgensen Ref. 2, No. 060, circa 1990, is estimated at CHF 40,000–60,000.
The preview is open to all from November 5 to 8, 2026, ahead of the live sale on Monday, November 9. Between a Sultan’s gift and a racing champion’s Journes, the Rare Watches sale makes its case that a watch’s story can be worth as much as its movement.
| Lot | Estimate |
|---|---|
| Patek Philippe Nautilus Ref. 3700/1, yellow gold, "Khanjar" dial, 1978 | CHF 500,000–1,000,000 (US$610,000–1,200,000) |
| Patek Philippe Ref. 1518, yellow gold, 1948 | CHF 500,000–1,000,000 (US$630,000–1,300,000) |
| Cartier Octagonal Allongée, London, 1990 | CHF 400,000–600,000 (US$490,000–720,000) |
| Voutilainen Vingt-8 SC (28SC), unique, circa 2020 | CHF 300,000–500,000 (US$360,000–600,000) |
| Sylvain Pinaud Origine, unique, circa 2024 | CHF 100,000–200,000 (US$130,000–250,000) |
| F.P. Journe Vagabondage I, II, III, pink gold, No. 36/68 | each CHF 400,000–800,000 (US$500,000–990,000) |
| F.P. Journe Tourbillon Souverain Ref. T, No. 125/01T, circa 2001 | CHF 650,000–1,400,000 (US$820,000–1,800,000) |
| F.P. Journe Ruthenium Octa Jour et Nuit, Octa Chronographe, Octa Calendrier, No. 92/99 | each CHF 300,000–600,000 ($380,000–740,000) |
| F.P. Journe Ruthenium Tourbillon Souverain, Chronomètre à Résonance, No. 92/99 | each CHF 650,000–1,200,000 ($800,000–1,500,000) |
| Urban Jürgensen Ref. 2, No. 060, circa 1990 | CHF 40,000–60,000 |
Sale: Christie's Rare Watches, Geneva, Monday, November 9, 2026, at the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues. Preview: November 5–8, 2026. Lots: 218 timepieces (more than 35 vintage; 39 by independents, seven unique).
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